Inaugural lecture

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Alumni event, Career

Conference

Lecture

Are you interested in expanding your knowledge on the Dutch crisis management system? Leiden University is organising a unique lecture series on the subject in collaboration with the Netherlands Institute for Public Safety (NIPV). The lectures will take place on 22 April, 13 May, and 3 June.

On 4 and 5 September, Leiden Law School hosted a special conference that brought together around sixty participants from the Netherlands and abroad to discuss the future of economic, social, and cultural rights – rights that touch upon everyone’s daily life: housing, education, healthcare, food, and…

In the academic year 2022-2023 the Social Resilience and Security interdisciplinary programme will offer a new minor for students who are interested in studying interpersonal violence and who are entering the third year of their Bachelor's degree. The announcement went down well with students: the available…

How can we safeguard children’s rights in conflict zones? The winners of the 2025 Children’s Rights Moot Court Competition, team 19 from O.P. Jindal Global University in India, show unique potential to bring about positive change in this area.

On 26 January 2023, a conference was held at Leiden Law School on children’s rights and migration. The conference, organised by Stichting Migratierecht Nederland (SMN) and the Europa Institute of Leiden University, was attended by academics, lawyers, judges, policymakers, and other legal professionals…

After the summer, the SPSS statistics programme will be replaced by the new ‘R’ software for first year students. Hemmo Smit and Sjoerd Huisman, both lecturers in Methodology and Statistics, initiated this major change in the curriculum. That did not happen overnight.

Scientists and non-scientists co-creating breakthrough citizen science projects for measuring, understanding, and mitigating air pollution. That’s what happened during the first international workshop of the newly established Citizen Science Lab from 22 until 26 January at the Lorentz Center at Leiden…

King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima attended a meeting at Leiden University on 1 October to prepare for their state visit to China. China experts informed them about such topics as the image that Chinese people have of the Netherlands.

A study of the International Union for Conservation of Nature has identified tree species native to Indonesia’s Kutai National Park that are resilient to climate change. The species support threatened East Bornean orang-utan populations; therefore, the study recommends their use in reforestation efforts.…

In zoos, at festivals and in a mobile lab at the market: everywhere, Mariska Kret tries to understand human and animal emotions with her distinctive behavioural research. Now she has received the Mercator Sapiens Stimulus of €1 million for her efforts.

Writing essays, refining grant applications, or creating a new course curriculum—ChatGPT assists students and researchers in these endeavours. What this new technology means for working in academia, was discussion at the fourth Psychology Connected event.

Your local city park may be improving your health, according to a new paper led by Leiden environmental scientist Roy Remme. In Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences Remme and his colleagues describe how access to nature increases people’s physical activity—and therefore overall health—in…

Green spaces boost mental health—especially in busy cities. A new study from Leiden and Stanford University reveals how nature benefits urban well-being and offers low-cost ways to make city life healthier for everyone.

How to reduce aggression when two parties are at odds? PhD research by psychologist Lennart Reddmann's shows that it can help to offer them a peaceful alternative. However, the attacking party benefits the most from such a solution.

The staff of the Leiden University Medical Center are doing all they can to help as many corona patients as possible. They are also making regular media appearances to discuss the disease. Below are a few examples.

On Sept. 29, Lara Wierenga, together with graphic designer Dirma Janse, presented their new book Atlas of our Brain. In the presence of fellow scientists and other interested parties, they shared some of the stunning illustrations and mind-boggling facts that can be found in the book.

The master thesis: for many students it is a true crowning glory. Some theses are truly excellent. Those are rewarded with the FSW Thesis Prize. This year, this award was won by Roosmarijn Goldbach (master’s Psychology) and Matija Čuljak (research master’s Psychology), who respectively researched borderline…

From exploring global issues at LUC to shaping young minds in the classroom, LUC alumna Malou den Dekker shares how her academic journey led to a career in education.

From 16 to 20 June 2025, the Institute of Security and Global Affairs of Leiden University hosted the annual Summer School The European Union, the United Nations and Global Governance in The Hague. The programme brought together recent graduates, PhD students, and young professionals from a variety…

Eight young researchers from Leiden University have received a Rubicon grant from the Dutch Research Council (NWO). This will allow them to conduct research at a top institute or university abroad.

Being rejected always hurts, but so does having to reject someone. Social psychologists have discovered that at interviews to select suitable housemates students dehumanise candidates to make it easier to reject them. That may sound harsh but, according to the researchers, it is also logical.

From science to startup: How do you approach it? Why should you take your research to the market in the first place? And what obstacles will you face? ‘It takes time to find a company that matches your motives.’

When can a patient be discharged from intensive care? Artificial intelligence can help answer this and other questions. But using such revolutionary technology in healthcare is not easy, as Anne de Hond has discovered.

Smiling faces, sweltering heat and a record-breaking donation – that was the Leiden Science Run 2025. On Saturday 21 June, the Leiden Bio Science Park turned bright orange as enthusiastic runners completed 4.5 kilometres to support research for vulnerable children.

Can students help make our cities more sustainable and resilient? The Resilient Cities Hub thinks so: during its knowledge café on 16 January, passionate students talked to municipal officials and pitched their master’s research. ‘In this way, the students learn to step out of the academic world and…

Autism, Alzheimer’s, and bipolar disorder: can the development of these mental health conditions be influenced by the ketogenic diet? Increasingly, research suggests it might. 'For those it helps, it can be life-changing,' says neuroscientist Eline Dekeyster.

How did you get to where you are now? This is a key question in the Academic Life Course board game, developed by and for academics. ‘In a normal working week we hardly ever talk about the career choices we make, but with this game, we do.’

Can we truly connect with each other through video calls? Yes, according to a recent study. Psychologists found our bodies synchronise almost as much in digital conversations as in real life. But this doesn’t mean we should skip in-person meetings altogether, says researcher Fabiola Diana.

'You’ll know right away when you meet your true love’ or ‘Opposites attract’: Some persistent beliefs exist about love and attraction, but are they true? Researcher Iliana Samara investigates the dynamics of attraction and explains which love myths we can let go of.

For the fifth year in succession, on the foundation day of the university, Leiden professors taught a lesson at primary schools as part of the ‘Meet the Professor’ programme.

The description of a painting directly affects how children look at that artwork. This was discovered by psychologist Francesco Walker in the Rijksmuseum. Another finding presented in his article in Nature - Scientific Reports is that giving children information intended for adults has the same effect…

Work might not always be enjoyable, but what if just a glance at the to-do list brings on a sense of dread? To initiate the conversation about this, the sixth Psychology Connected focused on work pressure and workplace enjoyment, offering tips rooted in positive psychology.

Traditional school tests, like the Dutch CITO, largely reflect students' existing knowledge and abilities. However, dynamic testing sheds light on students' learning potential, discovered Mirjam de Vreeze in her PhD research. This approach is especially promising for children with learning challenges,…

This year four research trainee projects were approved by the faculty to be carried out at the Institute for History this semester.

Dr Victor Klinkenberg calls himself a generalist pur sang. As an expert on digital archaeology he has worked on nearly all the regions the Faculty of Archaeology focuses on. “All I need to do is travel to the Caribbean once, and then I have done everything we do in Leiden.” We asked him about his background,…

What will it be like to study at Leiden University in 2075? Ten surprising, artistic uni-visions could be brought to life. It’s up to you to vote for your favourite.

It is late June, and on a windy meadow north of Leiden known as the Vrouw Vennepolder a group of archaeology students just hit the last ice age. Considering this involves manually pushing a ground core to a depth of 10 meters, this is no small feat. Even so, the taking of ground samples in this, at…

In this 'Educatip's column, psychology teachers share their key insights about work. This time: course coordinator Evelien Broekhof received support from teaching assistant Vincent during the last term. ‘I have more room in my schedule now that I don't have to do everything alone anymore.’

Andrew Shield (35) is a University Lecturer at Leiden University and the cofounder of the Leiden Queer History Network. History, migration and sexuality are all subjects he is passionate about and teaches in. He wrote a book about immigrants during the sexual revolution, as well as one on contemporary…

In 1925, two young physicists from Leiden University, George Uhlenbeck and Samuel Goudsmit, proposed a radical idea: spin. Their bold hypothesis quickly came to play a key role in physics and formed the basis for later breakthroughs in quantum mechanics. We are celebrating the anniversary of this discovery…

How do we get better at detecting research errors? And how do we ensure that we no longer see those errors as evidence of our inability, but as keys to better and more reliable research? Scientists offer advice during the third Psychology Connected.

How do you bring education and practice closer together? In the revised Master MPS (Management of the Public Sector) it is done, for example, through the new profile course Leadership & Behaviour inside and between organisations. The Leiden Leadership Centre (LLC) is involved in organising the course.…